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Dell Publishing

February 08, 2023

Dell Publishing Company, Inc. is an American publisher of books, magazines and comic books, that was founded in 1921 by George T. Delacorte Jr. with $10,000 (approx. $145,000 in 2021), two employees and one magazine title, I Confess, and soon began turning out dozens of pulp magazines, which included penny-a-word detective stories, articles about films, and romance books (or "smoochies" as they were known in the slang of the day).

Dell Publishing
Parent companyRandom House
Founded1921; 102 years ago (1921)
FounderGeorge T. Delacorte Jr.
Country of originUnited States
Headquarters locationNew York City
Publication typesBooks
ImprintsDial, Delacorte, Laurel Leaf, Yearling
Official websitewww.randomhousebooks.com

During the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s, Dell was one of the largest publishers of magazines, including pulp magazines. Their line of humor magazines included 1000 Jokes, launched in 1938. From 1929 to 1974, they published comics under the Dell Comics line, the bulk of which (1938–68) was done in partnership with Western Publishing. In 1943, Dell entered into paperback book publishing with Dell Paperbacks. They also used the book imprints of Dial Press, Delacorte Books, Delacorte Press, Yearling Books, and Laurel Leaf Library.

Dell was acquired by Doubleday in 1976, which was itself acquired by Bertelsmann in 1986. Bertelsmann later consolidated Dell with other imprints into Random House.

Paperbacks

Dell's earliest venture into paperback publishing began because of its close association with Western Publishing. William Lyles wrote, "Dell needed paper, which Western had in 1942, and because Western by this time needed printing work, which Dell could supply in the form of its new paperback line. So Dell Books[1] was born, created by Delacorte of Dell and Lloyd E. Smith of Western."[2]

Dell began publishing paperbacks in 1942 at a time when mass-market paperbacks were a relatively new idea for the United States market—its principal competitor, Pocket Books, had only been publishing since 1939. An examination[whose?] of paperback books available at this time shows no consensus on standardization of any feature; each early company was attempting to distinguish itself from its competitors. Lyles commented, "Dell achieved more variety than any of its early competitors. It did so, at first, with an instantly identifiable format of vibrant airbrushed covers for its predominantly genre fiction, varying 'eye-in-keyhole' logos, maps on the back covers, lists of the books' characters, and 'tantalizer-pages'. The design was merchandising genius; it successfully attracted buyers, it sold books."[2]

The first four books did not feature maps on the back cover; this began with Dell #5, Four Frightened Women by George Harmon Coxe. (A later re-issue of Dell #4, The American Gun Mystery by Ellery Queen, added a map.) The map was meant as an aid to the reader, to show the location of the principal activity of the novel. Some were incredibly detailed; others somewhat stylized and abstract. The books were almost immediately known as "mapbacks", and that nomenclature has lasted among collectors to this day.[3] The maps were "delicate and detailed".[4]

The novels in the mapback series were primarily mysteries/detective fiction but ran the gamut from romances (Self-Made Woman by Faith Baldwin, #163) to science fiction (The First Men in the Moon by H.G. Wells, #201), war books (I Was A Nazi Flyer by Gottfried Leske, #21 and Eisenhower Was My Boss by Kay Summersby, #286), many Westerns (Gunsmoke and Trail Dust by Bliss Lomax, #271), joke books (Liberty Laughs, Cavanah & Weir, #38) and even crossword puzzles (Second Dell Book of Crossword Puzzles, ed. Kathleen Rafferty, #278, one of the rarest titles today). There were a few movie tie-in editions (The Harvey Girls by Samuel Hopkins Adams, #130, and Rope as by Alfred Hitchcock, #262) and the occasional attempt at more artistic non-genre fiction (To A God Unknown by John Steinbeck, #407). Novels which are today long forgotten, by largely unknown authors (Death Wears A White Gardenia, by Zelda Popkin, #13) are in the same series as valuable original paperback editions of famous authors (A Man Called Spade, by Dashiell Hammett, #90). "The back cover map was very popular with readers and remains popular with collectors... the Dell "mapbacks" are among the most well-known vintage paperbacks."[3]

In the early 1950s, as series numbering reached the 400s, Dell began updating the appearance of its books. In 1951, the back cover maps began to be gradually replaced with conventional text and "blurb" covers.[3] Some later, more stylized maps were the product of Milton Glaser and Push Pin Studios. These innovations were brought in by editor-in-chief Frank Taylor. He introduced classics in paperback form under the umbrella imprint "Laurel Editions"[5] which included the Laurel Henry James series and the Laurel Poetry Series, the latter edited by the distinguished poet Richard Wilbur. In the early 1960s the Dell Purse Book series of pocket-sized information books on a wide range of topics was launched.[6]

Dell Ten Cent Books

At about this time, Dell launched two short-lived experiments which are also considered very collectible, Dell First Editions and Dell Ten Cent Books. The Ten Cent Books, 36 in all, were thin, paperback-sized editions containing a single short story told in only 64 pages (advertised as "too short for popular reprint at a higher price"), such as Robert A. Heinlein's Universe (1951).

Dell First Editions included novels by John D. MacDonald, Fredric Brown, Jim Thompson, Elmore Leonard and Charles Williams.

Comic strip reprints

In 1947, Dell published two unnumbered paperbacks based on newspaper comic strips, Blondie and Dagwood in Footlight Folly and Dick Tracy and the Woo Woo Sisters. Both are popular with collectors today.[3]

Dell was also the publisher between 1982 and 1987 of the series Twilight: Where Darkness Begins.

Dell today

Dell Publishing no longer exists as an independent entity. Dell was acquired by Doubleday in 1976.[7] Doubleday was acquired by Bertelsmann in 1986, who formed Bantam Doubleday Dell as its US subsidiary.[8] Bertelsmann acquired Random House in 1998 and renamed its US business after the acquisition.[9] After the merger, Bantam was merged with Dell Publishing.[10] In 2001, Random House purchased Golden Books' book publishing properties[11] effectively reuniting the remnants of Dell and Western Publishing. Bantam Dell became part of the Random House publishing group in 2008.[12] Ballantine Books was merged with Bantam Dell in 2010.[13] In 2013, Random House merged with Penguin to form Penguin Random House.[14]

Dell Magazines was sold in 1997, and it still exists as a major publisher of puzzle magazines, also publishing science fiction, mystery and horoscope magazines.

Imprints

See also

Notable publications

References

  1. ^ Dell Books (Dell Publishing Company, Inc.) - Book Series List, publishinghistory.com. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
  2. ^ a b Putting Dell on the Map, William H. Lyles, Greenwood Press, 1983, ISBN 0-313-23667-4
  3. ^ a b c d Collectable Paperback Books, ed. Jeff Canja, Glenmoor Publishing, 2002, ISBN 0-967363-95-0
  4. ^ Hancer's Price Guide to Paperback Books, Third Edition, ed. Kevin Hancer, Wallace-Homestead, 1990, ISBN 0-87069-536-3
  5. ^ Dell Laurel series (Dell Publishing Co., Inc.) - Book Series List, publishinghistory.com. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
  6. ^ Other Dell Series, bookscans.com. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
  7. ^ Krebs, Albin (1976-04-30). "It's Official: Doubleday Acquires Dell". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-10-14.
  8. ^ Tagliabue, John (1984-07-23). "German Publisher Widens U.s. Role". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  9. ^ Random House Company History, from Fundinguniverse.com 4 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed April 13, 2008.
  10. ^ Carvajal, Doreen (1999-05-28). "Bertelsmann Is Reorganizing Random House". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  11. ^ "'Poky Little' $84M deal". CNN. Reuters. August 16, 2001. from the original on October 7, 2012. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  12. ^ "Massive Reorganization at Random House: Steve Rubin, Irwyn Applebaum Step Down; Doubleday and Bantam Divisions Dismantled". Observer. 2008-12-03. Retrieved 2019-10-14.
  13. ^ "Ballantine and Bantam Dell Come Together Under McGuire". Publishers Lunch. 2010-04-13. Retrieved 2019-01-20.
  14. ^ Bosman, Julie (2013-07-01). "Penguin and Random House Merge, Saying Change Will Come Slowly". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-04-04.
  15. ^ "Book Ends". The New York Times. 15 February 1976.

External links

  • Official website
  • LOC.gov: Dell Paperback Collection — The Rare Book and Special Collection Division at the Library of Congress.

February 08, 2023
dell, publishing, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, june, 201. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Dell Publishing news newspapers books scholar JSTOR June 2014 Learn how and when to remove this template message Dell Publishing Company Inc is an American publisher of books magazines and comic books that was founded in 1921 by George T Delacorte Jr with 10 000 approx 145 000 in 2021 two employees and one magazine title I Confess and soon began turning out dozens of pulp magazines which included penny a word detective stories articles about films and romance books or smoochies as they were known in the slang of the day Dell PublishingParent companyRandom HouseFounded1921 102 years ago 1921 FounderGeorge T Delacorte Jr Country of originUnited StatesHeadquarters locationNew York CityPublication typesBooksImprintsDial Delacorte Laurel Leaf YearlingOfficial websitewww wbr randomhousebooks wbr comDuring the 1920s 1930s and 1940s Dell was one of the largest publishers of magazines including pulp magazines Their line of humor magazines included 1000 Jokes launched in 1938 From 1929 to 1974 they published comics under the Dell Comics line the bulk of which 1938 68 was done in partnership with Western Publishing In 1943 Dell entered into paperback book publishing with Dell Paperbacks They also used the book imprints of Dial Press Delacorte Books Delacorte Press Yearling Books and Laurel Leaf Library Dell was acquired by Doubleday in 1976 which was itself acquired by Bertelsmann in 1986 Bertelsmann later consolidated Dell with other imprints into Random House Contents 1 Paperbacks 2 Dell Ten Cent Books 3 Comic strip reprints 4 Dell today 5 Imprints 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksPaperbacks EditDell s earliest venture into paperback publishing began because of its close association with Western Publishing William Lyles wrote Dell needed paper which Western had in 1942 and because Western by this time needed printing work which Dell could supply in the form of its new paperback line So Dell Books 1 was born created by Delacorte of Dell and Lloyd E Smith of Western 2 Dell began publishing paperbacks in 1942 at a time when mass market paperbacks were a relatively new idea for the United States market its principal competitor Pocket Books had only been publishing since 1939 An examination whose of paperback books available at this time shows no consensus on standardization of any feature each early company was attempting to distinguish itself from its competitors Lyles commented Dell achieved more variety than any of its early competitors It did so at first with an instantly identifiable format of vibrant airbrushed covers for its predominantly genre fiction varying eye in keyhole logos maps on the back covers lists of the books characters and tantalizer pages The design was merchandising genius it successfully attracted buyers it sold books 2 The first four books did not feature maps on the back cover this began with Dell 5 Four Frightened Women by George Harmon Coxe A later re issue of Dell 4 The American Gun Mystery by Ellery Queen added a map The map was meant as an aid to the reader to show the location of the principal activity of the novel Some were incredibly detailed others somewhat stylized and abstract The books were almost immediately known as mapbacks and that nomenclature has lasted among collectors to this day 3 The maps were delicate and detailed 4 The novels in the mapback series were primarily mysteries detective fiction but ran the gamut from romances Self Made Woman by Faith Baldwin 163 to science fiction The First Men in the Moon by H G Wells 201 war books I Was A Nazi Flyer by Gottfried Leske 21 and Eisenhower Was My Boss by Kay Summersby 286 many Westerns Gunsmoke and Trail Dust by Bliss Lomax 271 joke books Liberty Laughs Cavanah amp Weir 38 and even crossword puzzles Second Dell Book of Crossword Puzzles ed Kathleen Rafferty 278 one of the rarest titles today There were a few movie tie in editions The Harvey Girls by Samuel Hopkins Adams 130 and Rope as by Alfred Hitchcock 262 and the occasional attempt at more artistic non genre fiction To A God Unknown by John Steinbeck 407 Novels which are today long forgotten by largely unknown authors Death Wears A White Gardenia by Zelda Popkin 13 are in the same series as valuable original paperback editions of famous authors A Man Called Spade by Dashiell Hammett 90 The back cover map was very popular with readers and remains popular with collectors the Dell mapbacks are among the most well known vintage paperbacks 3 In the early 1950s as series numbering reached the 400s Dell began updating the appearance of its books In 1951 the back cover maps began to be gradually replaced with conventional text and blurb covers 3 Some later more stylized maps were the product of Milton Glaser and Push Pin Studios These innovations were brought in by editor in chief Frank Taylor He introduced classics in paperback form under the umbrella imprint Laurel Editions 5 which included the Laurel Henry James series and the Laurel Poetry Series the latter edited by the distinguished poet Richard Wilbur In the early 1960s the Dell Purse Book series of pocket sized information books on a wide range of topics was launched 6 Dell Ten Cent Books EditAt about this time Dell launched two short lived experiments which are also considered very collectible Dell First Editions and Dell Ten Cent Books The Ten Cent Books 36 in all were thin paperback sized editions containing a single short story told in only 64 pages advertised as too short for popular reprint at a higher price such as Robert A Heinlein s Universe 1951 Dell First Editions included novels by John D MacDonald Fredric Brown Jim Thompson Elmore Leonard and Charles Williams Comic strip reprints EditIn 1947 Dell published two unnumbered paperbacks based on newspaper comic strips Blondie and Dagwood in Footlight Folly and Dick Tracy and the Woo Woo Sisters Both are popular with collectors today 3 Dell was also the publisher between 1982 and 1987 of the series Twilight Where Darkness Begins Dell today EditDell Publishing no longer exists as an independent entity Dell was acquired by Doubleday in 1976 7 Doubleday was acquired by Bertelsmann in 1986 who formed Bantam Doubleday Dell as its US subsidiary 8 Bertelsmann acquired Random House in 1998 and renamed its US business after the acquisition 9 After the merger Bantam was merged with Dell Publishing 10 In 2001 Random House purchased Golden Books book publishing properties 11 effectively reuniting the remnants of Dell and Western Publishing Bantam Dell became part of the Random House publishing group in 2008 12 Ballantine Books was merged with Bantam Dell in 2010 13 In 2013 Random House merged with Penguin to form Penguin Random House 14 Dell Magazines was sold in 1997 and it still exists as a major publisher of puzzle magazines also publishing science fiction mystery and horoscope magazines Imprints EditDial Press Delacorte Books or Delacorte Press Yearling Books Laurel Leaf Library Seymour Lawrence 15 Merloyd LawrenceSee also EditNotable publications The New Century Family Money BookReferences Edit Dell Books Dell Publishing Company Inc Book Series List publishinghistory com Retrieved 2 October 2021 a b Putting Dell on the Map William H Lyles Greenwood Press 1983 ISBN 0 313 23667 4 a b c d Collectable Paperback Books ed Jeff Canja Glenmoor Publishing 2002 ISBN 0 967363 95 0 Hancer s Price Guide to Paperback Books Third Edition ed Kevin Hancer Wallace Homestead 1990 ISBN 0 87069 536 3 Dell Laurel series Dell Publishing Co Inc Book Series List publishinghistory com Retrieved 2 October 2021 Other Dell Series bookscans com Retrieved 2 October 2021 Krebs Albin 1976 04 30 It s Official Doubleday Acquires Dell The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 10 14 Tagliabue John 1984 07 23 German Publisher Widens U s Role The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 01 20 Random House Company History from Fundinguniverse com Archived 4 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine Accessed April 13 2008 Carvajal Doreen 1999 05 28 Bertelsmann Is Reorganizing Random House The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2019 01 20 Poky Little 84M deal CNN Reuters August 16 2001 Archived from the original on October 7 2012 Retrieved July 3 2014 Massive Reorganization at Random House Steve Rubin Irwyn Applebaum Step Down Doubleday and Bantam Divisions Dismantled Observer 2008 12 03 Retrieved 2019 10 14 Ballantine and Bantam Dell Come Together Under McGuire Publishers Lunch 2010 04 13 Retrieved 2019 01 20 Bosman Julie 2013 07 01 Penguin and Random House Merge Saying Change Will Come Slowly The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 2016 04 04 Book Ends The New York Times 15 February 1976 External links EditOfficial website LOC gov Dell Paperback Collection The Rare Book and Special Collection Division at the Library of Congress Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Dell Publishing amp oldid 1111775840, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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